THE WOOL TRADE.

Waikato Times, Volume XLIII, Issue 3483, 25 October 1894, Page 11

THE WOOL TRADE.

THE Sydney Mail says:-"Although the Wilson Tariff Bill, under which wool 5s admitted into the. United Stites free Of duty, only came into force on the 27th ultimo, indications of a marked revival in trade, consequent upon the cessation (of the element of uncertainty in regard to fche fiscal policy of the great Republic of the West in the immediate future, have made their appearance with wonderful rapidity, and what is even more signifi cant, at many different points. By the closest and most acute students of all gorts of commercial signs and symptoms it was confidently anticipated that once A settlement of the tariff question in the States was arrived at, on whatever basis, the improvement in trade which for some little time past was believed to be only just below the surface would accomplish an entrance at a really vulnerable point. Trustworthy evidence of the gradual displacement of the depression which for a period of such unprecedented duration has hung in heavy clouds over our staple industry is afforded by the perusal of recent cable advices from the industrial centres of Yorkshire, Jxradon, and America, In the Bradford jnarket prices for wool are ruling very -firm, and a confident tone prevails, In the American markets values of domestic .woolb are reported to have advanced 35 per cent,, and factory wheels long standing idle have ouce more been set in {notion, From London we learn that gome fair quantities of the staple have t>een disposed of privately in that centre during the week at figures which mark an improvement on rates previously current, of from 5 to 10 per cent, while jn the Sydney wool market signs of the Revivifying current which appears to have been suddenly imparted into trade throughout the world have been clearly manifest. The rise of 36 per cent, in jtool in America yet requires confirmation, and sounds almost too good to be true, especially when it is borne in mind that a quantity equivalent to about 170,000 bales of Australian woolhasjust been takenout of bond, where it has been stored for #>me months awaiting the removal of the duties. In addition to this imported jtock—of which about 40,000 bales are believed to be of Australian origin—the American markets are now supplied with the domestic clip of 1894 from flocks .totalling 47,000,000 sheep, or, say, 700,000 bales.. With.-700,000 bales of locally grown wool and 170,000 bales imported itock for; their faotories to draw upon,, to lay nothing of the great volume of wool which is brought into sight by the shearing campai«n in these colonies, there jhould be no need for American users of the staple to plunge. That there was loom for a moderate, improvement, especially in the values of domestic wools, in the States is shown by the fact that the best Territory wools were selling on a basis of only 30 cents clean scoured, ever, after the Wilson Bill had been passed by tte Upper branch of the Legisla'tiirej and ! Jow as prices have been'durinjr the past eight months in London nojffool\couldibe obtained abroad by.the American mann* facturer to come in atjanything like these figures. ,The parbhasiog power, off the jpepfile in: America, as weilas in other parte of the world, has been seriously reduced by the recent long spell of depreslion, and,,in addition to this, stocks of manufactured goods wrought from low. priced raw material have been accumulating in Europe, to a very considerable extent of late, so that to the sober minded .At least there appear in the; existing situation to be no solid ground upon which ,to,base anticipations of anything like a boom in wool in the, near future, juid most people will be'satisfied, with a good brisk an 1 healthy demand and a »eady, uninterrupted return of prices to /a.Higher level.'V ' ! ""■!'.!■